Once Upon a Monster
Once Upon a Monster is a Sesame Street video game for the Xbox 360 Kinect, released on October 11, 2011. __TOC__ Players will explore a living storybook with Elmo and Cookie Monster. The game is centered on problem-solving, relationships and "learning key life skills". The game was developed for Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment by Tim Schafer's Double Fine Productions; its Double Fine's first licensed game. Schafer is known for his work on the Monkey Island computer game series, and Double Fine has recently produced two well-received games for the PlayStation Network and Xbox Live Arcade, Costume Quest and Stacking. New Muppet monsters include Marco and Seamus. The game also features appearances from favorite Sesame Street characters including Grover and Oscar the Grouch (with Slimey). The game features the authentic character voices by the Muppet performers, including Kevin Clash (Elmo), David Rudman (Cookie Monster), Eric Jacobson (Grover), and Caroll Spinney (Oscar). Additional voice talent are Gregg Berger, Tim Blaney, Jessica DiCicco, Jeannie Elias, Gideon Emery, Drew Massey, Lara Jill Miller, and Tara Strong. Story While browsing the library, Elmo returns to the street with several books, including one called Once Upon a Monster. Cookie Monster has fond memories of the book and they both enter it magically. Inside, they find that not everything is as great as Cookie remembered and help all the monsters in the story with their problems. The levels in the game are defined as chapters in the book. During the credits, the player can move the cursor next to the names, revealing Muppet-ized caricatures of the staff. Following the credits, Elmo and Cookie are transported back on Sesame Street. They have both had fun and Elmo wishes to read it again. They are both unsure what chapter to re-visit and leave it up to the player. Achievements Like other Xbox games, the game features many "achievements" for the player to achieve for a higher Gamerscore. Reviews Prerelease testing * ‎Gamespot: It's hard not to play this game with a huge smile on your face, especially if you grew up watching Sesame Street. The characters have been faithfully recreated in the game, and exude the same kind of charm that they've always had. Like the educational television show, kids will learn a few life lessons on cooperation and empathy, and learn to appreciate similarities and differences, just to name a few. * Kotaku Preview: The delightful Sesame Street: Once Upon A Monster for Xbox 360's Kinect controller is easily the best Sesame Street video game I've ever played... I was impressed with the way these Sesame Street characters were rendered and animated. They look believably fuzzy and googly eyed, true to their television counterparts, with the loose, bendy joints of a Jim Henson puppet. Awards * The game won the category for the "Best of Family Entertainment" at the 2011 Gamescom convention in Cologne, Germany. Gamescom press release International releases Image:OnceUponaMonsterAustralian.png|Australia October 12, 2011 Image:OnceUponaMonsterFrench.jpg|France October 13, 2011 Image:OnceUponaMonsterGerman.jpg|Germany October 14, 2011 Image:OnceUponaMonsterSpanish.png|Mexico October 14, 2011 Image:Barrio-sesamo-rase-una-vez-un-monstruo-xbox-360.jpg|Spain October 14, 2011 Image:OnceUponaMonsterBritish.jpg|United Kingdom October 14, 2011 Sources Videos File:Sesame_Street_Once_Upon_A_Monster_-_Trailer|February 2011 trailer. File:Sesame Street Once Upon a Monster|June 2011 trailer. File:Tim Schafer Pitches a New Video Game|Tim Schafer pitches his new game idea to Cookie Monster in a July 2011 trailer. File:Cookie Monster and Xbox 360|Schafer and Cookie collide in an August 2011 pre-release trailer. File:Cookie Monster is the controller!|Cookie becomes the controller in an September 2011 pre-release trailer. External links * Official Facebook page __NOWYSIWYG__ Category:Sesame Street Video Games